Ford celebrates 40 years of the Fiesta with a very special convoy

This is a discussion on Ford celebrates 40 years of the Fiesta with a very special convoy within The International Automotive Scene, part of the BHP Worldwide category; Ford's bestselling supermini in the UK, the Fiesta, recently turned 40. To commemorate the occasion, Ford rolled out a special ...

Ford's bestselling supermini in the UK, the Fiesta, recently turned 40. To commemorate the occasion, Ford rolled out a special celebration convoy of an assortment of 40 Fiesta cars from all generations, which drove from Dagenham to Brighton (both in the UK) in a long cavalcade, culminating in a huge get-together for a celebration party at the latter.

The first Mk1 variant of the very-popular brand had rolled out of Ford's Valencia plant in Spain in 1976, and 4 decades later, has sold nearly 43.4 lakh units in the UK alone, making it the most selling car in UK's auto history!

According to Ford, more than one in every 20 cars sold in the UK was a Fiesta over these last four decades.

The next-gen Fiesta has already been spotted on testing runs (link), and is scheduled to enter production sometime next year. Ford would want the all-new gen to continue it's stellar showing in sales numbers, as the next-gen Fiesta is slated to grow bigger and come with better refinement and improved overall quality, while maintaining a modified version of the same chassis as the current generation.

My tryst with the Fiesta started in 2014 and I've become a fan of Ford DNA! I can tell you that it was one of the most analog decisions in this digital world, to buy a car that was selling a couple of hundred units a month as against the several thousands of the segment leader! But it was well worth it. Fiesta is a revelation in every sense for me and is the perfect car that I could own as of now. Mpg, kmpl, mph, kmph, 0-60, 0-100 - all these are secondary to the Fiesta, what matters is it gives the maximum smiles/km and I'd take it over the others every single day!!!

It feels awesome to know that I own a piece of 40 year old history! Here are my contributions -

Globally Fiesta is a well known brand and sadly though in India except with enthusiasts, it didn`t make a cut in the market. However if Ford India chips in this car again to the Indian market, then I will be the first one to stand infront of the showroom with the cheque book.

Some of the interesting tit bits about Fiesta.
1. Ford has sold 4,339,149 Fiesta sin the UK since the model debuted in 1976.

2. European sales of the Fiesta have exceeded 18 million.

3. In the last 40 years, one in every 20 cars sold in the UK has been a Fiesta.

4. Yes, that means that 5% of ALL the cars sold in Britain in the last four decades have been Fiestas.

5. The Fiesta has been the best-selling car every month for the last SEVEN YEARS.

6. In 2014, the Fiesta became the UK’s best-selling car of al time, overtaking another Ford – the Escort.

7. Production of the Fiesta began in a new factory in Valencia, Spain in 1976.

8. The Fiesta name was chosen personally by Henry Ford II for its alliteration with Ford and its celebration of Ford’s new connection with Spain.

10. By 1979, a million sales of the Fiesta had already been racked up.

11. In 1981, Ford introduced its first hot hatch version of the Fiesta, the XR2, with a 1.6-litre engine, along with stiffer suspension, perforated alloy wheels and styling treatments that included auxiliary driving lamps (remember them?).

12. The XR2 was also the first 100mph Fiesta.

13. The MkII Fiesta was launched in 1983. Longer and more efficient, it also introduced a 1.3-litre engine to the line-up – with a fifth gear.

14. A 1.6-litre diesel was also introduced in 1983, which became a mainstay of the line-up for more than a decade.

I don't really understand the logic of Ford to not have fiesta in Indian market. They had earlier iterations of Fiesta hatch as Ikon and Fiesta sedans, then we had latest iteration as well for not very long duration before it was axed. When India has Polo, i20, Baleno, Jazz which are superminis and sold in UK market then why only Fiesta is missing? I can't understand Ford's logic.

Now that they have Figo which is basically a Ford Ka, then can we have Fiesta back but in hatch as well, that would be one hell of a car. But with our 4m rule, Fiesta petrol won't be a scorcher thanks to 1.2l engine restrictions and we will have to be content with 1.5l diesel for performance. Please FORD listen to us team-bhpians.